Forging apparatus



C. JERNHEW FORGING APPARATUS Fil ed Aug. 26, 1.926 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Ill n n In H m II I C. 51 JERNBERG FORGING APPARATUS m E, W2.)

Filed Aug-26 1.92s 4; Sheets-Sheet 3 fifi$fil$ c. R. JENBERG FORGING APPARATUS Filed Aug. 26, 1926 4, Sheets-Sheet 4 in w W til iii

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J 3 J'JERNBJEM, @JE TWA, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO STANDARD trier Hid-d CUMPANY, 0h 'GHIUAGW, TILLINOT$, .d. GURTORATION 01E ILLINOIS.

TUB MPTATUS.

Application tilled hurt to, 1926. Serial Ito. 131,553.

This invention relates to apparatus for making vehicle wheels having steel hub centers and spokes for ed in a single piece.

l-leretofore spiders ave been made comprising separately forged steel spokes, which later have either been separately bolted to a hub-center or been welded together and to the center. While such devices possess certain advantages, it is found in practice that they also possess certain disadvantages, do not hold up 'sapisfactorily in use under all conditions of service, and are relatively costly to produce.

The principal object of this invention is to develop apparatus whereby such a one piece steel forged spider for vehicle wheels may be produced with desirable speed and economy.

I The invention consists in the devices and combination of devices herein illustrated, described and more particularly set forth in the claims appended hereto.

Tn the drawings:

Figure 1 indicates, in a perspective view, a block of metal, such as a steel ingot, from which an improved wheel is made by the apparatus herein. described.

Figure 2 is a side elevation of an upper die and of a portion of a lower die of my invention (the latter being partly in section), in juxtaposition with the metal blank shown in section upon the lower die.

Figure 3 is a plan view of the bottom of the upper die, looking in the direction indicated by the arrow 33 of Figure 2.

Figure 4 is a view of the stamping out or cutting dies, and the forged blank in position; the upper die being in side elevation;

and the blank and lower die in section.

Figure 5 is a central, vertical, sectional view through the cutting dies and forged blank after the cutting outoperation. Figure 6 is'a top plan view of the anvil or lower one of the cutting dies, partially broken away and with one pair of knife plates removed.

Figure 7 fish. bottom plan view of the upper one of the cutting dies, with two of the knife plates removed, looking up, as indicated by the arrows, on the dotted line 7-7 of Figure 1 Figured is a top plan view of the stamped out spider, the part of theblank trimmed ed being indicated by the dotted line.

Figure 9 is a central, sectional view of the spider... i

Dy 3- The lower: or operating face of the vanes In said drawings, it. represents a steel ingot or billet as a whole, substantially rectangular in shape and of dimensions less than the diameter of the proposed spider,-

indicated as a whole at B. The ingot or billet may be of any desired thickness.

(3 represents 'an upper forging die, if) a lower forgin die, mounted upon a suitable support 1, 4 an upper cutting die and ll a lower cutting die or anvil.

The support 1 is a fixed part of any suitable forging apparatus and the lower die D is movably mounted thereon, to rotate in a horizontal plane by any suitable means, such for example as projections or sprocket teeth 4, spaced apart around the periphery of the body of the die l) and adapted to be engaged by a sprocket chain 3.

The sprocket chain is actuated from anysuitable source of power, not shown.

The upper die U is provided with a suit able upstanding flange member-c adapted for attachment to the reciprocating hammer head of any suitable hammer (not shown) for giving a reciprocating movement, vertically, to and from the lower rotatable die D.

The to surface of the lower die l) is suitably conhgurated with a central depression and a surrounding annular recess indicated at 5 and 6 respectively, to form one face of the ingot A to the shape required for the disc or blank Gr at the end of the first or forging operation, as will be readily understood by those familiar with forging operations. The lower face ofthe upper die is so configurated as to cause the other face of the blank G to assume a similar configuration at the completion of this first or forging operation, excepting that the upper die (3 has no central depression corresponding to the depression 5 in die it).

Said die Chas a centrally located, con vexly curved or annular projection 71, surrounded by an annular, relatively narrow fiat surface a. lit also is provided with a plurality of blades or vanes 9 which extend downwardly from a flat surface 10, the latter depending from the same'horizontal plane as the surface 8. When the upper and lower dies C, D, are in juxtaposition, the surfaces lllh t and 9 of the die (3 are parallel with the bottom surface of the recess 6 of the lower 9 is'inclined, as shown in Figure 2, so that each vane is thicker at its outer part 11 at the periphery of the dieC than at, its inner part 12, and each vane 9 is widest at its outer portion 11, as shown in Figure 3. The outside wall 13 of each vane is shaped in a symmetrical, convex curve from the part 11 to.

its end 12. The inner Wall of the vane is concavely curved at 14 for the maj or portion of its length, beginning at 11, and the balance of the inner wall to the end 12 being given an annular curve 15 concentric with the projection 7. The meeting of the inner ends of the walls 13 and 15 forms the end 12 of the vane 9, as shown clearly in Figure 3.

When the heated ingot A is placed upon the top surface of the lower die D and subjected to repeated 'impact by the reciprocating upper die C, which is provided with divergent metal working vanes and the lower.

' mechanism illustrated in Figures 4, 5, 6 and 7, wherein the upper and lower cutting dies E and F respectively, are shown, disconnected from the machine proper and from means for actuating the upper die.

The anvil or lower die F is provided, as clearly shown, with a central, cylindrical recess 19 defined by a circular wall 20, the top face 21 of which is below the plane of the top face 22 of the anvil. The anvil is also provided with a plurality of radially disposed recesses 23-, corresponding with the number of spokes to be cut in the blank G, said radial recesses extending inwardl from the top surfacei22 of the anvil F.- uitable resilient means is located in the radial recesses 23 to support a table or/movable plate 24, the latter being provided with a downwardly pro- ]ectin extension 25 adapted for telescoping or sli ing hearing within the central cylindrical recess 19. I prefer to employ a pair of coiled springs 26 in each radial recess, as

shown, upon the upper ends of which the screws 29, the plates being in pairs, and their proximate cutting edges 30 being-configurated to form the edges of the wheel spokes, as clearly shown in Figure 6. To the bottom of the projection 31 of the upper die E, I secure a plurality of knife blades 32, by any suittheseblades corresponding with the number of radial recesses 23 in the anvil F. These blades are arranged radially, as shown in Figure 7, and their cutting knife edges 34 are shaped so as to be complemental with the cutting edges 30 of the knife plates 28, so that the proper shearing or cutting action of .the blank G will occur, when the latter is placed upon the anvil F and the upper die E is operated from the position shown in Figure 4 to that shown in Figure 5. When in this latter position, it will be observed that the plate 24 will have been depressed and restsupon the top 21 of the wall 20, that the springs 26 will have been put under tension, and that spider B (Figure 8) will have been cutout of the blank G, the surplus metal of the blank thus cut away being that part of the blank within the dotted line 35 (Figure 8).

The central part or'web 36 of spider B is then bored out, as indicated at 37 in Figure 9. The arms of the spider constituting the spokes 38 of the completed wheel are then shaped to the particular design required as by bending the ends 39, and may be punched for rivet or bolt holes for attachment to the wheel rim. Also the central ring or hub portion 40 may be punched with bolt holes as indicated at 41, Figure 8, whereby the wheel may be bolted to the vehicle upon which it is to be used. The punching of the holes 41 may be accomplished before or in the same operation as the punching of the holes in the spokeends 39.

. Any suitable annular rim may then be sooured upon the spider B by rivets, or other suitable means. The metal wheel is now completed, ready for receiving a tire upon the rim and to be bolted to the vehicle. Obvious- 1y with some forms of rim, the rim and spider may be integral instead of being separate and secured together by rivets or welding. It will be noted that the function of the projection 7 on the upper die U is to define the spider center, and that the flat concentric surface 8 and the concentric wall 15, co-operating with the surface recess 6 of the lower die D, define the central rim or hub portion 40' of this'sp'ider. Also by making each vane 9 non-concentric and thicker at 1ts outer portion 11 than at its inner portion 12, the necessary co-operation is obtained between the inclined contacting. faces of the vanes and the outer face of the lower die D which is concentric with the surface 6, whereb the part 16 of the blank G is spun through th s forging action of the divergent vanes of the upper die and simultaneous rotation of the blank wit-h the lower die to the desired taper from the shoulder 17 to its edge 18.- -Thus the tapering of the spokes 38 of the finished spider is automatically produced in the forging operation; the concave-convex able means, as by screws 33, the number of shape given to the side walls of the divergent lllll) neaaaa tapered vanes 9, providing the means whereby the metal is laterally distributed and progressively worked down and toward the periphery of the blank. Further by making a each vane wider at its outer end than at its inner end the outer portions of the blank are worked down faster and the metal is more uniformly distributed towards the periphery of the dies.

The form of the vanes illustrated, l have found in practice, to produce excellent results, but ll do not desire to be limited to the precise geometric shape shown, and obviously some modifications thereof will be necessary when producing blanks of other configurations than that given to the blank Gr.

The apparatus described and illustrated produces rapidly and cheaply, a one piece spiderwheel, which is effective and durable in use, and superior to those spiders wherein the forged spokes are bolted or welded.

' ll claim as my invention:

l. A forging apparatus adapted to work down and spin a hot billet to the desired contour and thickness, comprising a lower, ro-

tatable die having its upper face cut to a desired configuration, and an upper reciprocating die provided with a plurality of spaced apart spirally directed and downwardly projecting vanes, each vane being wider and thicker at its outer end than at its inner end.

2. A forging apparatus adapted to work down and 'spin a hot billet to the desired contour and thickness, comprising a lower, ro-

- tatable die having its upper face cut to a desired configuration, and an upper reciprocating die provided with a plurality of spacedapart spirally directed and downwardly projecting vanes, each vane being wider and thicker at its outer end than at its inner end, and having one side wall surface convex and the other side wall surface concave and also circular.

3. A forging apparatus adapted to simultaneously work down and spin a hot billet to the desired contour and thickness, comprising a rotatable die and a reciprocating upper die, the face of the lower die-being configurated as desired, the upper die being provided with downwardly projecting curved vanes spaced apart from each other and extending from the circumference of the'die body inwardly towards but not to the center, the contacting surface of each vane being inclined upwardly from its outer to its inner end.

day ofiAugust,

4. A forging apparatus adapted to simultaneously work down and spin a hot billet to the desired contour and thickness, comprising a rotatable die and a reciprocating upper die,

the face of the lower die being configurated as a from its outer to its inner end, the inner wall 1 of each vane for its major portion being coneaved and being at its inner portion circular.

5. A forging apparatus adapted to work down and spin a hot billct to the desired contour andthickness, comprising a constantly rotating billet supporting die, and a reciprocatingdie having divergent metal working vanes so arranged as to spin the metal while forging,

'6. A forging apparatus adapted to work down and spin a hot billet to the desired con tour and thickness, comprising a constantly rotating billet supporting die, and a reciproeating die having non-concentric metal working vanes so arranged relative to the axis of the rotating die as to cause a progressive tangential displacement of the metal during forging. a I I 7. A forging apparatus adapted to work down and spin a hot billet to the desired contour and thickness, comprising a constantly rotating billet supporting die, and a reciproeating die having spaced divergent metal working vanes so arranged as to non-concentrically impinge the,rotating billet while forging.

'8. A forging apparatus adapted to work down and spin a hot billet to the desired contour and thickness, comprising a constantly rotating billet supporting die, and a concentric reciprocating die having non-concentric metal working vanes.

9. A forging apparatusadapted to work down and spin a hot billet to the desired contour and thickness, comprising aconstantly rotating'billet supporting die, and an upper reciprocating die provided with a glurahty of spaced, spirally directed, meta working vanes. 7

In testimony, that if claim the foregoing as my invention ll aflix any signature,

@AlltL RICHARD JERNBERG.

this 24th lltltl 

